This week on the All About the Mouse Disney Podcast we tackle a topic that comes up fairly often in Disney trip planning discussions. Many guests with special needs visit Disney theme parks each and every day, but perhaps one of the special needs we don’t hear enough about is the needs of Disney’s guests with autism. Autism is a neurological disorder that can affect people on many different levels in a variety of severity and capacity, and it can present a unique set of challenges to guests visiting sensory-filled theme parks overrun with sights, sounds, and crowds. Our special guest this week, Bessy of the Simply Bessy blog, has personal experience with this topic both as a Disney fan and the mother of a young child with autism. She’ll walk us through the challenges that people should be prepared to face in the parks, accommodations that Disney makes for guests with autism, how the Disability Access Service works, as well as many other tips families with members with autism can use to maximize their experience in Disney theme parks.

In the news this week, J. J. Abrams will write and direct Star Wars: Episode IX, 2 hard-ticketed events return to Walt Disney World, Disney’s Hollywood Studios begins showing previews of the upcoming Disney Pixar film “Coco”, Ellen Degeneres wants her animatronic from Ellen’s Energy Adventure, and much more.

We also surprise another one of our listeners with a Mouse Call and give them a chance to answer their All About the Mouseketeer interview questions. If you would like to register for your very own Mouse Call or become one of our official All About the Mouseketeers, all you have to do is send us an email to podcast@aatmcentral.com and tell us who you are, where you’re from, and give us your phone number. It’s that easy!

All of this, and much more, lies ahead on this week’s episode of the All About the Mouse Disney podcast – Your weekly dose of Disney magic and mayhem!

Our special guest this week, Bessy, is a former early childhood teacher turned stay-at-home mom with a passion for writing and blogging. She and her husband Gabriel have been taking their son, David, to Walt Disney World since he was 7 months old. Since he was diagnosed with autism at the age of 3, Bessy has had a total of 10 trips to Disney with David.

Learn more about Bessy and her family on her blog Simply Bessy.

You can follow her on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/simplybessy/ and also on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/_simplybessy/.